The Gravity of it All
by LilliannaStone
Summary: The Teen Titans aquire a new team mate with unique powers. Beast Boy especially is enthralled by her, and will stop at nothing to figure her out. But what happens when a girl with powers over the earth shows up? Imense amounts of fluff with a bit of adventure thrown in. mostly BB/OC, Robin/Raven on the side. T for swearing and a bit of suggestiveness at the start.
1. Green and Purple

Raindrops pattered lightly on the sidewalk, leaving the odd dark blotch here and there. Clouds had settled on top of the bustling city just before nightfall, blocking any fading light the sunset would bring. The early darkness and chilly rain had discouraged most from enjoying an evening out. The night air left goosebumps on anyone who was outside at this late hour. And very few people were.

Matilda was one of the few that were outside as the rain slowly dripped from the sky. She was walking down a particularly gloomy side road, the only sources of light a flickering street lamp and the neon sign of a small pub. Muffled music floated to her ears as Matilda strolled by. Catching a whiff of cigar smoke she wrinkled her nose.

Shoving her hands into her pockets for warmth, she continued past the stinky bar. She'd been tempted to go into a bar once, just to see what it was like. It sounded...interesting to say the least. But crowds, loud music, and air that wasn't really air anymore didn't suit her.

Sighing at the ground Matilda was about to start wondering _why_ she didn't want to sneak into a bar like a normal 16-year-old, but she was interrupted.

From behind her she heard the loud and shrill squeak of the bar door being opened. Partially out of instinct and habit she glanced backwards. A young woman in a short dress and heels was walking across the street, not entirely stable in the tall shoes. She kept glancing back to the building she'd just come from, causing her long black hair to flip around.

_Odd, _Matilda mused. The pretty lady looked frightened, but the thin girl in the rain didn't know why until the bar door opened a second time.

This time three men walked out. The first was tall with broad shoulders; the stereotypical biker, tattooed arms and all. He sauntered out, eyeing the young women in front of him with a sadistic smile. Behind him came a thin man, equally tall but bony. Matilda could tell he was agile, just the way he held himself showed he knew how to move quickly. Beside him and the last to come out was another well muscled man, but short. All together, in their head-to-toe leather, it gave Matilda a sick feeling in her stomach. She knew they were after the woman.

Hoping she was wrong she decided to let it play out for a bit. If need be, she would take all three men down faster than they could ever hope to comprehend.

Quietly Matilda drew back against the nearest wall, partly concealed in the darkness. From here she could see but not be seen. Not that anyone usually gave her a look in the first place.

"L-leave me alone!" the woman slurred. She was obviously drunk. The next few steps she took backwards caused her to fall. "What do you want? I-I told you I don't want anything you're off-fferig!"

The trio of men moved forward, tattooed man in the lead. He called back, "We just wanna have some fun, baby. And we're not taking no for an answer," he said lightly, as if he were talking about playing a card game.

Fury bubbled in Matilda's stomach. She loathed people like the tall man, now in the middle of the street. People like him took whatever they wanted from whoever was conveniently close, and over the past few years she'd seen this happen too many times.

Breathing heavily through clenched teeth it took all her willpower to calm down and wait before attacking. They had to try to hurt the woman before she could really do anything to stop them. If she attacked without incentive, there could be legal issues to deal with later. And she knew she didn't need anymore of those. Cops didn't take, "But I just _knew _they were going to try to do something," as a good reason.

Leaning her head back against the cold and rough brick wall, Matilda breathed deeply. She tried to focus on the rain hitting her face, anything to take her mind off her anger. She didn't want to lose control now of all times, who knew what could happen?

A muffled scream reached Matilda's ears. Jerking off the wall she saw the men had grabbed the woman roughly and were dragging her into a nearby alley. She thrashed and screamed, stiletto shoes flying in opposite directions. All the men did was laugh cruelly.

"That's it," Matilda growled.

Launching herself down the street she felt her barely contained rage take over. There was no way she was holding back on these perverts.

Footsteps echoing loudly off the dark buildings lining the road, they mingled with the sound of the woman's screaming. Her heart thumped loudly in her ears, her breath came in a pant. Reaching the first shoe on the sidewalk she scooped it up as she ran by, not breaking stride for a moment. The short man was about to round the corner into the alley when Matilda yelled, "Heads up!"

She chucked the shoe at his head and looking up he received a face full of fake suede. He groaned and held his cheek where the shoe had struck.

Through clenched teeth he spat at her, "You little bitch. Who do you think you-" But he didn't get to finish.

The underside of the young girl's hands, bottoms of fingers included, had started to glow a pale, bright purple. As she had gotten within meters of the swearing man she had drawn her right hand back. With her palm facing forward she planted her feet and with a yell of fury had shot her hand out.

It was like a battering ram had hit the guy. Matilda heard the satisfying sound of the air being pushed from his lungs as he was flung back ten feet. He flew past the shadow filled entrance to the alley, and Matilda heard the woman's screams and the men's taunts go silent.

Not wasting any time she took off into the alley, bottoms of her hands still glowing. Standing in the middle of the entrance she took in her surroundings. The alley was a dead-end, with lots of graffiti on the stained walls. There was a sticky looking dumpster that wreaked of rotten food against the wall to Matilda's right. The entire place was one massive shadow, barely any light from the nearby street lamp made its way in. Matilda's palms were the only steady source of illumination. It was difficult to see _and_ hear as the light rain started to pour down.

In front of her the two remaining men stood looking at her in shock. The woman was crying behind them, backing up as far as she could go against the filthy wall of the alley.

"You're all sickos, you know that right?" Matilda called. She moved into her usual 'ready' position. Feet staggered and slightly wider then her shoulders, right arm up with her hand in a fist, left one down with her palm flat and facing up. "By the time I'm done with you you're never going to look at a woman again."

Both men were still staring at her hands, but the burly one was the first to respond. It seemed his anger was stronger than his fear. "You think you can tell me what to do?" he pointed at her and laughed. Sauntering forward he continued, "You little brat! When I'm done with the cry baby behind me you're next."

The dark-haired woman gave a whimper, at which the skinny man hissed, "Shut up!"

"Hey!" Matilda pointed at him. "Leave her alone! If you're looking for someone to mess with I'm right here!"

The big man called softly over his shoulder to his partner, "Watch her while I deal with this one." Then he charged at Matilda. She should have been terrified at the bull-like man running at her, but she wasn't. It only made her more determined to teach him a lesson.

He swung at her head, which she nimbly bended backwards out of the way. He tried again but she ducked. Growling he attempted to knee her side but she stepped back easily. Never once did her arms move out of their positions.

She smiled, it was like his anger was rolling off of him in waves. Deciding to have some fun she continued dodging and evading, watching in twisted delight as the man got more infuriated with each miss. He aimed a kick to her torso but she fell to her knees and his foot sailed over her head. She rolled backwards, her back now pressed against the alley wall, right beside the big dumpster bin.

The man was breathing heavily and glared at her with such a fury that Matilda wondered if he had any emotion other than anger. The thin man took a step forward, ready to help his friend. Holding up a hand the panting man growled in his deep voice, "I don't need your help. Just give me your knife!" From a pocket a switch blade was produced, and as it was being passed from the skinny man to the muscled man, Matilda decided that she was tired of this. There was no way they were ever going to just leave.

So from her crouching position she waited until both men had some contact with the small knife before curling her hand into a fist. It was almost cartoon like, how their hands fell like weights to the earth. Panic engulfed them as they tried futily to lift their hands.

The thin man shouted hysterically, "Wh-who-how are you doing this?" as he tugged on his wrist.

Standing up Matilda answered, "Gravity, bitches."

Then in an instant she brought her hands to her right hip, put the heels together and pushed upwards. She felt the familiar pressure and resistance as she removed the gravity from the area the men were standing on.

With high-pitched screams they struggled as they became weightless and floated off the ground, hovering 15 feet above the wet and cracked pavement. The rain around them floated to, each bead of water suspended majestically in the air while everywhere else it continued to pound into the ground. Then snapping her hands back to her sides Matilda made the gravity return with more force then before, and with a loud thump the two men landed and blacked out. With a flash of purple Matilda's hands regained their normal light peachy colour.

Glancing around the alley Matilda admired her work. From outside the alley she could hear the man that had taken the shoe to the face groaning. He wouldn't be getting up soon. Neither of them would.

Seeing the crumpled men she'd knocked out she sighed. Muttering to herself about how annoying it was her conscience always made her double check, she shuffled over to them. Rain pounding on her back she leant over and pressed her fingers, none too gently, into their necks. Satisfied with the steady heartbeats she felt, Matilda stood up.

_Next problem,_ she thought tiredly._ What do I do with them?_

Before she could even start to think, there came a slurred gasp from behind her. "A-are they dead?"

The woman was still backing up against the wall, thoroughly soaked, covered in dirt and other garbage, and hyperventilating.

"No, they're not dead," Matilda explained slowly. "Just unconscious. But I won't hurt you, alright? Are you okay?" She was about to start walking towards the terrified woman when she heard someone different speak up.

"Wooooah!" came a unique voice. Gravely yet still soft, it sounded in awe by something. And Matilda knew he was in awe with the scene of the alley. Without thinking she spun around, palms lighting up, and lifted the newcomer into the air.

"Woah! Woah! Woah! Put me down! I don't want to hurt you!" the boy shouted over the rain. His arms and legs flailed. He sounded sincere, but Matilda knew better than to trust blindly.

Taking a cautious step forward she called up at the now still boy, "Who are you?" She tried to see his face, but the night covered almost all of him in shadow.

"Put me down and I'll tell you," he suggested hopefully. "If I had wanted to attack you I would have done it while you weren't looking."

_Valid point, _she grumbled to herself.

The floating boy clasped his hands together and grovelled mid-air, "Let me down? Pleeeeeease?"

Despite herself, Matilda gave a laugh that was mostly just a snort. There was something about his playful tone of voice and comical gestures that she couldn't resist.

"Ha! You laughed! You have to set me down! But then I'll introduce myself," he promised. Squinting into the darkness, he added as an afterthought, "But I can hardly see you, come out into the light."

Gritting her teeth Matilda slowly returned the gravity to the boy's patch of sidewalk, and then he stood waiting for her outside the alley. Uneasily she walked forward tense and ready to act, palms still the glowing purple. She was furiously creating different scenarios in her head, along with escape routes and possible outcomes for each, but all was forgotten as she reached the edge of the darkness.

Standing in the faint light of the rusty lamp was a green boy. Green. At first that was all Matilda could focus on, that the boy in front of her was green. Green skin, green hair, and not to mention a small fang. But then she noticed his eyes. They were large, and such a beautiful dark green that they pulled her in. Before she knew it her hands had lost their glow and she was gazing wide-eyed at him.

Her heart did an unnecessary flutter when she processed that he was staring back, wide-eyed as well. Almost in a trance she stepped towards him. He seemed so...familiar. Like they'd met before but she'd forgotten him. _How could I ever forget someone like him,_ she wondered.

She extended an arm and said breathlessly, "Hi."

A gloved hand, thoroughly soaked, slipped into hers and squeezed gently. "Hey," came his soft reply. She felt shivers that had nothing to do with the rain crawl up her spine. His short (and green, she couldn't get over that) hair was plastered to his head, water dripping in rivulets down his round face. He looked extremely cute, she had to admit.

They stood like this in the rain, just staring at each other, stuck in a perfect moment for too short a time before it was broken.

The piercing wail of sirens made both of them jump back. Matilda hadn't even noticed how close they'd gotten.

Suddenly in a panic, she looked behind the green boy to see blue and white flashing across the walls of nearby buildings. They were close. Much, much too close. Breathing heavily she whipped her head in all directions, searching for the best way to leave unseen.

"What's the matter? I won't let them hurt you!" the boy soothed. He grabbed her hand tightly, "Really, it's okay."

Turning back to him Matilda squeezed back quickly. "Sorry, but they don't like me very much," she hastily explained as she pried her hand away. Jerking her head towards the alley, she tried to silently communicate that there had been too many incidents like the one behind her.

Taking frantic steps back as the police cars screeched their way around the corner she shrugged her shoulders. "I'll-uh-see you around?"

Then Matilda took one last look at his incredible green eyes before turning and sprinting down the street. Dimly, she thought she heard him call something, but it was lost in the noise of the storm and the sirens.

It wasn't until she was 12 blocks away that Matilda realized she had never even learned his name.


	2. A New Guy

Beast Boy was semi-aware of the police cars wailing behind him and the officers locking up the shaking men, but he didn't pay any attention. He was too busy staring dreamily in the direction the girl had run. The rain was pouring down even more, flooding the streets with cold water. There was the occasional flash of lightning in the distance and the muted rumble of thunder, but the green boy didn't notice.

He couldn't put a finger on it, but she had seemed so familiar. Her face was beautiful, he couldn't deny that, but it was like she was from a dream. A hazy, partially formed memory that he could feel sitting at the back of his mind. To his frustration though, he couldn't place her. The familiar feeling was nothing more than that. A feeling.

_But come on, BB,_ he thought._ How could you forget her? _

The girl had stood slightly taller than him, but not as much as Starfire or Raven thankfully. Beast Boy had grown a lot in the past year but was still the shortest team-mate.

Her face had delicate, open features and eyes that he couldn't stop picturing. It had been difficult to tell in the dim light, but Beast Boy could have sworn they were almost purple. Her soaking hair had held some soft, tangled waves. The grubby bunnyhug she'd worn was too long for her and her jeans looked worn and faded, but she was still beautiful.

_Ya, but who is she?_

"Uggghhh!" Beast Boy shouted with sudden realization. Dragging his hands down his face he remembered what he had forgotten to ask; her name.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," he muttered, head in his hands. A cop walked by and the changeling could feel the look he was getting. Still in the process of mentally kicking himself he didn't care in the slightest how the armored officer looked at him.

"You're trying to be reached," the cop told him over the mutterings. Looking at his hip Beast Boy noticed his communicator beeping.

"What? Oh, thanks. Beast Boy here."

Robins disgruntled voice sounded loudly over the rain, "Beast Boy where are you? We could really-ow!-use some help!"

Hearing the crackling sound of explosions in the background BB hurriedly answered, "Ya I'm on my way, I got distracted. But you'll never guess what I found," he started excitedly.

"You can tell us later, grass stain," Cyborg joined in. "Get your butt down here."

"Ya, ya I'm coming." Quickly changing into a hawk he took off into the sky.

The wind battered and chilled him as he made his way to the scene of the fight. Flying low over the city he resumed the path he had been on before he'd spotted the purple flashes of the girl's hands. Her powers were impressive, not to mention her fighting abilities. He'd only ever seen Robin dodge punches like that, and he'd learned how from Batman. Chuckling to himself, Beast Boy wondered how long the team leader would last in a fight against the mysterious girl.

Swooping down to the outskirts of the city, Beast Boy flew over the garbage dump. Below him on the muddy ground were the rest of his team battling Cinderblock and Plasmus. Raven's black energy was throwing piles of debris at the stone beast as Robin wailed on him with his staff. On the other side of the dump were Starfire and Cyborg dealing with the gooey one.

Cinderblock landed a nasty blow to Raven, who crashed into the ground. When she didn't get up Robin yelled frantically, "Raven!"

Rolling his eyes as the boy wonder ran to the unconscious girl, Beast Boy decided he should help them out first. Robin would be too distracted fretting over his crush to even notice if Cinderblock attacked. _Typical._

Morphing instantly from a hawk, BB hit the ground running as a giant t-rex, one of his personal favourites. Giving a mighty and ear-splitting roar he rammed his huge head into Cinderblock. Flying backwards into a towering pile of assorted rubbish, the concrete monster stirred slightly. Casually the dinosaur moved forwards and stomped on the villain for good measure.

Pleased with his work, Beast Boy changed back. Glancing over his shoulder he rolled his eyes at the sight of the two most hard-headed people he knew. They were disgustingly cute together. Robin, who was the one who told you to take some Advil and shake it off, was stroking Raven's hair and telling her to stay put and rest for a while. Raven, who didn't laugh at even Beast Boy's most hilarious jokes, was smiling up her hero.

Heaving a sigh, he was about to go help his other friends when he saw that Plasmus was unconscious to. Catching his robotic friend's eye, BB looked pointedly at the pair behind him before pretending to gag. Clutching his throat and making retching noises he fell to his knees. Starfire's giggles and Beast Boy's sounds brought Robin back to reality, who looked from the writhing green boy to Cyborg.

"What's with him?"

Trying to hide his snickering behind his hand Cyborg managed, "N-Nothing."

As the stoic boy wonder helped Raven to her feet, all the while keeping an arm around her shoulders, Beast Boy couldn't resist taking it up a notch. Falling to the ground and squirming even more he choked out, "The cuteness! Ah! It's too much!"

A few gagging noises later he played dead, much to the annoyance of Raven.

"What took you so long." Her unamused voice snapped at him.

"Wow, way to get to the point, Rae." He brushed the mud off his clothes before holding his hands up defensively, "And it wasn't my fault I got distracted."

Robin pinched the bridge of his nose, "Beast Boy, if you're going to get distracted so easily when you travel by yourself-"

"No, serious it wasn't my fault. Look, there was this girl, right? And she had the coolest powers ever." The green boy then started to tell his team-mates about the mysterious girl with the purple hands. With great detail and many sound effects Beast Boy recounted how he had seen flashes of purple light from the street beneath him. Landing on a roof top to see better, he'd come across the young girl beating up some thugs. He made great emphasis on how she'd never once touched them, but used evasion and her powers as weapons.

"Her style reminded me of you, Robin." Beast Boy had settled down much since he'd started. His voice went from hyper-active to thoughtful as he remembered the confident and slightly smug look the girl had worn. There it was again, that familiar feeling.

"What do you mean she reminded you of Bird Boy?" Cyborg was completely baffled. Robin's suit didn't make him look _that _girly did it?

The group of Titans had all made their way to the newly arrived police vans. Everyone except Beast Boy was watching Cinderblock and Plasmus get hauled off. The green Titan was staring at the ground with unfocused eyes as he tried to describe the similarities of Robin's and the girl's fighting styles.

"It's mostly just the way you guys move. Robin and the girl, you're both very...fluid?" He felt almost silly for using that word. He tried again. "You can both dodge quickly. It seems that you can see an attack before it happens, and you know exactly what the best counter attack would be. I can't really be sure, since she never threw an actual punch, but I think she's been trained."

Seeing Robin nod slowly from the corner of his eye Beast Boy hoped he didn't sound like a complete tool.

"I mean, you should have seen her," Beast Boy said in hushed awe.

Behind him, Raven pulled her hood up to mask her smirk. The feelings of curiosity and admiration were dangerously close to affection. They were rolling off of her team-mate in copious amounts. It surprised her a bit, but Beast Boy was impressed, genuinely impressed, by someone other than himself.

BB of course, was completely oblivious to the emotions Raven was picking up. He was still too busy staring un-seeingly at the puddles on the ground. The rain had let up, and was now lightly drizzling instead of pouring. And like the rain, Beast Boy's thoughts had settled to.

Instead of wondering for the millionth time if he'd ever see her again, which he had firmly told himself to let go, he was wondering why she'd run from the police. The sirens had reached their ears and her expression had become panicked. He'd caught her words hastily explaining the cops didn't like her much, but what had she meant by that? In all honesty she didn't seem like the criminal type, but then again he didn't know her. How could he trust her?

All this his rational side told him firmly. Beast Boy knew _why _he shouldn't trust her, but there was a small part of him that wanted more than anything to believe she was good. With skills like that, she had to be good!

He'd decided just minutes ago that he wouldn't wonder about seeing her again, or suggest the Titans look for her. Just this once he would let his rational side take the lead. But the main reason the changeling didn't want to tell his team about this strange need to look for her was because he knew his ideas would be shot down by logic faster than he could defend himself.

Pulled from his deep thinking by a nudge on his shoulder Cyborg said softly, "Come on grass stain, let's go home." Calling to the rest of the team, "Let's all go home. Besides, Raven needs to lie down, right Robin?"

The metal man gave an evil smile as he watched Bird Boy start to answer seriously about Raven's health, then stop mid-sentence. Blushing furiously their leader stalked off towards the T-Car, muttering under his breath.

"Nice one, Cy," BB laughed. Then he loaded up in the car with his friends.

* * *

Beast Boy got about eight hours of sleep, but it only felt like three. The instant he had lied down and relaxed he was out. It seemed like seconds later that he was woken rudely by the Tower alarm. At first the green boy thought that with a groan that it was still night, that really only a few mere seconds had passed, but the evidence proved him wrong. Morning sunlight shone through his window as the incredibly loud siren told him that some criminal was getting things started early.

He slid off his bed and made his way to the main room as fast he could, which wasn't very fast considering he was the equivalent of a zombie.

Yawning and rubbing the remaining sleep from his eyes, Beast Boy entered the room to see everyone already there. Standing beside Robin, who was at the computer, he saw that no one else joined him. The rest of his team were standing in a huddled group behind the couch, observing their leader. Even Raven looked nervous, so Beast Boy started asking, "What's with everyone-"

"Slade," Robin snarled and pounded the keyboard with his fist. He was bent over the monitor like BB had seen many times before. Only the elusive, metal-masked villain could make Bird Boy look like this.

Cyborg winced as his precious technology rattled with impact.

"Where is he, Robin?" Starfire wondered quietly.

Robin answered her in a deadly low voice, fury contained just below the surface, "A warehouse in the industrial area. They've had to evacuate the surrounding buildings because of his bots."

Beast Boy took a few quick steps back. Bird Boy only looked like this when he was over the top angry. Not to mention when he talked in a voice to rival the Batman's, a hasty and dramatic turn away from the monitor usually followed. Anyone within three feet got a face full of cape.

As predicted, Robin suddenly stalked towards the door, edge of his black and yellow cape snapping right under BB's nose.

While the green titan checked that his sniffer was still attached to his face, the stone faced hero called without looking back, "Let's. Go."

Within minutes the Titans had arrived at the warehouse. It was large and completely empty. Entering through the side, they now stood just inside the football field size building. Cyborg had punched down the door, and they'd all burst in ready to fight. But there was something missing.

"Uh, is it just me or are there supposed to be Slade Bots here?" Cyborg raised his eyebrow and pointed at the empty space in front of them.

Starfire hovered nervously above their heads. "Yes, I too was under the impression there would be the Bots of Slade here."

Beast Boy didn't like it. Changing back from his bear form, he walked to the center of the warehouse. The building was obviously new. Unlike most of the warehouses he'd seen, which had been used or abandoned for years, this one had a clean floor with no cracks or bugs running around. The walls were free of grime and stains, but it was still dark. Unusually dark.

Everyone followed their green team mate to the middle and stood in a loose semi-circle, backs to the recently torn down door. Something was telling him, probably his rational side, that things weren't right. The entire place was too quiet, Starfire's recent words had echoed off the concrete walls. It made the warehouse seem even more empty and forlorn. Beast Boy glanced at his team, who were now beside him.

Robin had his staff out and was glaring at the empty space. Raven was hovering now, hood drawn to hide her eyes. Beast Boy guessed that her clenched jaw meant she was uneasy too. Cyborg had his cannon ready and was sweeping the end back and forth while Starfire flitted here and there.

Then the dead silence was broken by a cocky, "Well this is disappointing. You didn't even hear me."

Despite himself Beast Boy shrieked.

The Titans all whipped around. Standing before them was a teenage boy with his well toned arms crossed over his chest. His chin was thrust forward even though he had a mask. Beast Boy could hear the cocky smirk he was wearing. His voice suggested he wasn't any older than Robin, but he was as tall with broad shoulders. His body suit was a dark grey with red gloves that reached his mid-forearm.

The mask he wore covered his entire face, leaving the only defining characteristic his wavy blonde hair that was gelled back. The mask was the same deep red as his gloves with the black and white domino mask over the eyes.

Beast Boy instantly loathed him. Not only had he snuck up on them without his hyper sensitive hearing picking it up, but his voice pissed him off too. It was arrogant and hauty and full of himself.

"State your name and business," Robin demanded, Bo staff pointed at New Guy's chest.

New Guy ignored him and surveyed the team. "Let me guess. Robin?"

"I said-" Robin started, but New Guy cut him off. He pointed to each team member as he identified them, not guessing but stating.

"And we have Raven, Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy. Yes I know what you said Robin, but my name will have to wait." His voice became mischievous, "As for my business, well you'll figure it out."

Then through the walls burst two dozen Slade Bots. Cement flew in solid chunks and dust, filling the warehouse with flying debris of all kinds. New Guy, the second the tank like robots had broken through, had jumped at Robin. The boy wonder's surprise had kept him from reacting on time to the flying side kick, and BB watched the red masked boy kick Robin to the ground.

Fast as he could, he changed into a giant gorilla and tried to hit New Guy. But New Guy jumped away and then _climbed _up the wall. Like a giant grey and red gecko he crawled his way to an air vent and escaped onto the roof.

While his gorilla mouth was hanging open a large Slade Bot marched up to him. He swatted it and two others away. Catching glimpses of the others in battle, Beast Boy saw Raven encasing the bots in her black aura; Starfire blasting them apart with starbolts; Cyborg using his cannon and punching them across the building; Robin was back on his feet and savagely beating the Slade Bots with his staff.

Another bot rushed Beast Boy, but he knocked it flat on it's back. He pounded down on it with his huge fists over and over until it was in pieces, Donkey Kong style. While he was pounding, he didn't hear the sound of hydraulics at work until he was hit from behind. Forced to his regular form as he was thrown forwards the landing hurt a great deal.

With the air knocked out of his lungs and still stunned from the fall, he couldn't fully process that the bot that hit him was now looming over him. When his vision cleared he saw that he was about to squished into guacamole. As the thick metal arms were raised, something unexpected happened.

As the robots center of gravity was slightly off as it tilted back to strike, it was suddenly pulled down to earth. The way it was pulled down was familiar for some reason. It was like it had no choice but to fall, and it couldn't get up. It struggled before falling to pieces as Beast Boy groggily sat up.

Then he raised his green eyes to see the girl standing a few feet away. He couldn't help it. He grinned at her. He had absolutely no idea how or why she was in the warehouse, but he didn't care.

She was in a slight crouch, purple hands stretched out as she used her unknown powers to tear the Slade Bot apart. Her curly hair was pushed behind her ears and the sleeves of her sweatshirt were pushed up. Her eyes met his, but only for a brief second as three more bots rushed at their new target.

With simple motions of her hands the machines were levitated or dragged down and somehow broken to pieces. It seemed that the girl was tired from the sudden use of energy. Her heavy breathing reached his ears as she looked over at him.

Then another bot came up behind the brown haired girl, Beast Boy tried to call out but it was too late. She seemed too tired to do anything, and barely turned to see the metal monster bear down on her. Beast Boy's eyes widened and fear constricted around his heart.

_Oh no._

The arm swung down, and the girl went flying to land in a crumpled heap.

* * *

Thanks to everyone who's read, favourited, and followed! And to my sole reviewer it means so much, all of you!

I promise to keep these AN's short, so I'll get right to it. Sorry for the long wait, but trust me when I say I don't mean to take this long. I had a little bit of difficulty getting started, things kept getting in the way but I wanted to take time and put out something (hopefully) good. I hate having to spit out something that's crap just to meet a deadline. Ch. 3 should be up end of this week, promise I got a break from school so I'll have time.

Please review! Tell me if you'd like more info on the plot and if it follows canon etc.

-Lilly


	3. 303

It was after one in the morning when Matilda reached her destination.

Looking up at the run-down apartment before her, she pursed her lips as she thought of who she was about to see. It wasn't her original plan to come to the Acadia Apartment Complex, but since her encounter with the men an hour ago, Matilda knew it was a better choice than hiding from cops all night.

She hesitated before entering the shabby building. _Is it worth it? _she asked herself.

It had been quite a hassle getting to her current position in Jump City. After leaving the green boy in the rain she'd run as far as she could from the police cars. Positive that someone, whether it was the boy, the woman, or the thugs, would describe her, she couldn't take the chance of staying in the area.

In a slight panic, the soaking wet girl had sprinted past the stinky bar in the direction she had come from. She'd ducked down a few side streets before ending up in a small alley. From a relatively clean corner, stashed under a sheet of plastic Matilda had pulled out her worn and ragged backpack. The alley was supposed to be her 'house' for the night, and she'd left it briefly to go for a walk.

After retrieving the dark green bag from its hiding spot she'd continued to run. Several times she had to duck behind dumpsters or parked cars as the cops had cruised by. Though the darkness and heavy rain helped keep her hidden from sight, she was still on edge.

An hour later, after evading several cars and pedestrians, Matilda now stood before the decrepit apartment building brooding over her options. In all honesty she didn't want to walk up those stairs, but what choice did she have?

_Come on, Matilda,_ she reasoned._ You're tired, wet, freezing cold, and you can feel your nose starting to plug up!_

With a sigh that left a cloud of vapour in the air, she readjusted the straps of her backpack and walked in.

The building was disgusting, to say the least. The small doorstep that faced the street was covered in sticky substances, glass and some other things Matilda didn't want to look at. Before she even got inside the girl was repulsed. After pulling open the first door, which was barely attached to its hinges, she crossed to the second. This one required a key or someone upstairs to let you in, but the metal latch seemed stuck in the 'out' position, keeping the door from shutting.

She would have laughed at the irony of the safety door unable to close properly, but the smell made her afraid to open her mouth. The brief times that she inhaled, Matilda caught a whiff of alcohol, human waste, and something rotten. It made her stomach churn.

Taking a tiny breath she looked at the directory of rooms. Scanning as fast as she could she found the name and number she was after; _R. Haffort 303. _

Lungs bursting for air now, Matilda ripped the second door open and sprinted for the stairs. Only when she reached the third floor landing did she stop to breathe. The stench wasn't as bad here, so she took huge gulps of air before stepping into the third floor hallway.

Walking across the uneven floor covered in a threadbare carpet, Matilda shoved her hands in her pockets. The first door on her right held the dirty bronze numbers 303. Matilda stared at them for a moment.

She felt a strange emotion course through her. It wasn't fear, Matilda hadn't felt fear in years. It was apprehension. It was an interesting feeling, she had to admit. As much as she knew that her only choice at the moment was to knock on that door, she would rather spend another night on the street. The last time she'd seen _her _was five years ago, and the memories she had weren't fond ones. Her aunt was exactly like the rest of her family, and that included Matilda's mother.

In a small effort to make herself seem less homeless than she actually was, Matilda combed through her curly hair with numb fingers. Now that the adrenaline had worn off she truly felt how cold and exhausted she was. Her feet felt like lead and it was a great struggle to keep upright. Her entire body was drained of energy. Shivering violently in her soaked bunnyhug she brushed off the largest clumps of mud and prepared herself.

Wiping her face of all emotion, Matilda knocked softly on the door.

There was silence for a moment, nothing but the hum of the light down the hall. Then from behind the door came the sound of footsteps. They were even and light, the walk of someone steady on their feet, not the sloppy, heavy thuds of someone who's drunk. Relaxing, Matilda knew that her cousin would answer the door.

With a soft creak the door opened a few inches, revealing the tired face of Brady Haffort.

"Hey, Haffort," Matilda said quietly. She was careful to keep her emotions hidden. Exhaustion, nerves, the headache and plugged nose she had were all hidden for the moment. It was force of habit to hide everything, even around people she trusted.

The door opened wider and her large, blonde cousin leaned against the door frame. He answered her in the same low voice, face a carefully controlled mask, "Hey, O'Brien."

"Where's your mom?" Leaning to the side slightly Matilda saw a sliver of the interior of the apartment. Horridly bare with nothing but a couch in the front room, she tried to locate her aunt. The couch was turned away from the entrance, so she couldn't see if anyone was passed out there.

"_Rita's_ on the couch," he answered bitterly with a nod behind him. "What are you doing here, Matilda?"

"Look, I need your help, alright? You remember the deal we made when we were kids."

"Course I remember," he told her in a gentler voice. "If one of us ever ran away we'd give food and help. But you ran away years ago, Matty," he said pointedly.

She glared at him. "First of all, don't call me Matty, I hate nicknames. Second, I am running away. Technically."

He scrutinized her for a moment, dark brown eyes searching her own for sincerity. Matilda shivered involuntarily and she wondered what she must look like. Half crazed? An addict of some kind? Most likely small and pathetic, especially since she was asking for help at one in the morning from a boy she hadn't seen in years. She couldn't decide if showing how vulnerable she felt would help her case or not.

"Wait on the stairs, I'll do what I can," he told her in a flat voice.

* * *

A few minutes had passed and Matilda was seated in the stairwell. She was breathing on her hands, trying to put some warmth back in them, when Brady came up behind her.

He sat down heavily on the same step and handed her a mug with some steaming drink. He also placed a towel, an old long-sleeved shirt and a pair of sweat pants beside her.

"Thanks," Matilda murmured. She took the cup and held it close with both hands. The hot exterior was a blessing to her frozen digits, and she inhaled the sweet aroma of tea. Feeling Brady's eyes on her she raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?" she said slowly, keeping her eyes on her tea.

"I'm wondering why you're at my apartment at one in the morning. Don't you ever sleep?" he said grumpily. He moved so he was lounging across the stairs. Matilda's eyebrows drew together. Brady wasn't this much of an asshole, was he?

"I just need help. I'm not asking for anything else, Brady."

Brady's head rolled lazily towards her. His eyes scanned her up and down quickly, like he was assessing her. Matilda got the first good look at him since she arrived. He was considerably larger than she remembered. Five years ago, when she was 11 and he was 12, Brady had been a thin, gangly boy. Now, he was a good head taller than her with shoulders that take up most of a door frame. At 12 he'd had a splash of freckles across his nose, but in the light of the stairwell she saw his skin was flawless and tanned. With the blonde hair and chiseled jaw he could pass as a surfer.

But the biggest difference Matilda saw in her cousin were his eyes. Memories from five years ago were slighty fuzzy, she hadn't had any use for them so they went in the back of her mind, but the one thing she remembered clearly was Brady had been an open little boy. Despite how terrible she knew Rita treated him, Brady had smiled and made jokes. While his eyes had held a deep sadness in them there was still kindness.

Now his brown eyes were empty as he asked her coldly, "Why are you here?"

"Well I'm sorry I'm such an inconvenience for you, Brad," she spat. "I didn't realize I was such an unwelcome person in your life."

He sat up. "Well I'd like an explanation about why you show up at my door looking like a druggie, asking for help. So until you explain yourself," Brady grabbed the dry clothes off the step. His expression was steely and cold. His brown eyes had a guarded look to them, there was no emotion. This wasn't the same boy she'd seen five years ago.

Looking at him with shocked eyes Matilda whispered, "What happened to you?"

His jaw unclenched a bit as he heard her words.

"What happened to the sweet little boy who would help anyone no matter what?" Her voice grew stronger. "I know we've never been the best of friends, but I thought we had an understanding; sometimes a person needs help. Period. It shouldn't matter why."

He ran a large hand through his blonde hair, which looked like it had been gelled back during the day. Her cousin exhaled heavily through his nose, making her think of a bull. His temper was like one, that's for sure.

"Look, things with Rita aren't that good at the moment," he said sharply, all the while staring only at her shoulder. Matilda couldn't help but think, _Liar._ Rita wasn't the cause of his behaviour,but she'd have to settle for a lie. "I'm sorry but I'd like to know _why_ you're here."

"It's fine, Brady," she waved a hand at him. She took a long drink from her cup before adding, "But could I have those clothes? I promise I'll tell you what happened but I'm frozen."

He dropped the clothes beside her before sitting down himself. "Fine."

Matilda grabbed the clothes and stood on the landing behind Brady. Peeling off her dark grey sweater she started her story.

"I'm here because I got into a little trouble earlier this evening. I, uh, well I kind of beat up some guys."

"What?" Brady growled.

Matilda groaned, "They were bad guys, alright? They were after a woman. They dragged her into an alley and I stopped them before they could hurt her. After that happened though cops showed up. Someone must have phoned in that a meta-human was attacking people. I think about three cars showed up."

She purposefully left out that a green boy had shown up as well.

Brady swore under his breath, "We all know how uptight the cops are about rouge meta-humans. And it's not like you have a good reputation with the police either."

She pulled on the sweats then sat back down beside him, grateful to be in dry clothes. Tossing her jeans and sweater beside her backpack a few steps down, she picked up the towel. As she vigorously dried her hair she said grumbled, "I know, I know. That's why I'm here, the cops are all over Jump City looking for me."

"You can't stay, Matilda."

"I know. I wasn't going to ask to stay either. No offense but your mom is too much like mine."

"Don't you mean Rita is _exactly_ like Ronda was?" Brady muttered. "I'm sorry she's dead by the way. I know this condolence is about three years late, but still."

Matilda was thoughtful for a moment. She decided to be truthful. "I really don't miss her you know. And no," she said forcefully. "I didn't cause her death. I haven't lost control of my powers in six years."

Her cousin nodded slowly. Then from down the hall behind them there was the sound of breaking glass and a drunken slurr, "Brady!"

"Sorry, Matilda. Rita's up, you should go. Now." Brady stood up and took her cup from her. "Keep the clothes, it doesn't matter."

Matilda stood up and shoved her sodden clothes in her backpack. Slinging it over her shoulders she made to run down the stairs but stopped. On impulse she turned as Brady was about to leave and grabbed his hand.

"Thanks, Brady." She squeezed his fingers, than disappeared down the stairwell.

* * *

OK, wow you guys I am so sorry! My computer broke last week and this has been done for a while but my stupid piece of technology won't turn on! I finally was able to get to the school library to publish this so it's here finally. To make it up to you I'm posting two chapters at a time. Soon as this one's up the next is right on the way!

Again, so sorry! Don't hate me or hunt me down with pitchforks?

-Lilly


	4. A Memory of Gotham

Matilda spent most of the night running. She knew she was getting sick; she could feel the weariness in her limbs, the stuffiness of her nose, the headache that was starting, but she pressed on. Jogging around the city, keeping warm, Matilda let herself mull over what she had to do now.

She remembered in perfect clarity what had been told to her on a rooftop in Gotham. She smiled fondly at the memory.

It had been a cool night, much like the one she was experiencing now. The city below her spread on and on, full of lights and fog.

Gotham wasn't her favourite city, that's for sure. But of course she'd never tell _him _that. Truthfully, it'd always felt unclean in a way, especially at night. That unclean feeling was probably because she'd spent her first few nights in the city's less admirable areas. Of all the slums and dark side streets Matilda had seen, Gotham had the worst. There were angry looking people that glared at anyone that crossed the same street as them, there were the ones that looked so lost and broken they might fall apart in a strong wind, and there were the ones that had no emotion in them at all. Matilda had seen an emotionless one once, it had been terrifying. It wasn't comprehensible that someone could be so closed off that they felt no remorse if they did anything to hurt others. She'd watched as a woman refused to give up her cheap, plastic necklace, and the man had shot her on the spot. Taking everything of even remote value from her corpse he'd run. Matilda remembered his face when she caught up to him.

In a way though, she also envied Gotham. Her own city hadn't had what Gotham did; the Dark Knight. Never had she heard of a man to devoted to something so much larger than himself. The thousands of people he was willing to die protecting was humbling. She'd never experienced anything like that in her life.

And she'd told him.

He'd chuckled at that, but not as Batman, as Bruce Wayne. A soft, modest laugh with the smallest smile on his face. Something she'd never heard or seen from the Batman. Matilda had asked if he would spend her last night in Gotham as her friend, not her mentor.

Bruce had obliged and they sat on the edge of Wayne Tower, feet dangling into open air. He'd brought some of Alfred's homemade baking, which was her favourite. Matilda couldn't count how many times she'd wished her dad had been this cool. They'd sat up there, high above the commotion of the city as two friends in comfortable silence.

Eventually, when the moon was high in the black sky and the few stars that could be seen shone brightly, he spoke. "You know," Bruce started with a mouthful of cookie. "It's not too late to buy you a plane ticket to Jump City."

Matilda smirked. _Not this again._

"You know," she answered in the same light tone. "I prefer travelling my own ways."

"No, you just don't like anyone spending money on you."

Matilda looked at him seriously, "You've done enough for me, Bruce. I know you'd _love _to blow some cash but it's un-necessary."

She munched on her cookie, determined not to let the man beside her win. One thing she'd always been was stubborn.

Bruce shuffled closer to her. Nudging her with his elbow, the one she'd seen cost men their teeth, he told her, "I _would_ love to spoil you, but you won't let me."

He huffed and feigned hurt. Matilda smiled sadly at her swinging feet. "I know you'd love to do that."

She couldn't help it, she started thinking about her father. He'd never once in the time she'd known him made any intention of wanting to spoil her. The most he'd done was the occasional cheque to help pay for food. The only father-daughter time they'd ever had was when she was alone in the house with him. That in itself wasn't the most pleasant, not that anything happened. If the television would work, he would watch and she would read. They'd never gone for dinner, or to the movies, or even on walks. She never did get to hear the story of how he and Ronda had met.

She'd never gotten a life lesson from her father, not like she secretly had wanted. In the eight months she'd spent with Bruce and Alfred, Matilda had learned more about everything and anything than in eight years with her father.

A cold wind blasted her curly hair back, and she wrapped her arms around herself. She closed her eyes and rid her mind of her father. Instead, the girl focused on the sounds of Gotham; horns, flowing traffic, the occasional siren. They were muted by the wind, which was exceptionally strong atop Wayne Tower.

Opening her eyes again, Matilda took in the piercing lights of the buildings that shone through the darkness. In a way it made the city glow. In a way it made it look almost beautiful.

Bruce put his arms around her and sighed, "Oh, I'm going to miss you. You're not that bad when you don't, you know," he shrugged, "_Levitate_ me." He finished with a laugh and kissed the top of her head.

Matilda leaned into the man. It was rare that Bruce Wayne showed this much affection. He was only ever like this as Bruce though. As Batman, Matilda knew he was anything but affectionate. During training, Batman wouldn't show mercy or allow breaks. If she fell, she picked herself up. Simple. But that was with Batman.

And she spoke to only Bruce Wayne when she told him, "Ya, I'll miss you to. And I only levitated you once!" She shoved him, "And it was an accident. You scared me." She pouted.

Laughing, Bruce let her go so only one arm was over her shoulders. He turned back to serious Mr Wayne, the guy he reserved for meetings. "You have everything? Jacket, Blanket, Food, the bit of money you let me give you?"

Nodding Matilda stood up. "Yes, I have everything."

"Letter?"

"Yes, Bruce," she sighed. But then she smiled at her best friend, put on her backpack and whispered, "Thank you."

As she walked past him towards the maintenance stairwell she put a hand on his shoulder. "Bye Matilda. Say 'hi' to Richard for me."

Halfway to her exit, Matilda though of something and shouted back to Bruce, "By the way, how will I know what their tower looks like?"

Looking over his shoulder with a crooked grin he called back, "Oh, you'll see."

Matilda was pulled from her thoughts. She was back in Jump City, and the sun had risen now. She was standing in the middle of a road and a car was honking at her.

_Oops_. Smiling sheepishly and mouthing a 'Sorry!' to the peeved driver she ran off the road. Pushing her sweaty hair out of her face with one hand, the other on her hip, Matilda took in her new surroundings.

It seemed she was in a warehouse district. The street she'd just crossed divided a large construction site and several storage buildings. She'd just come from the side with the large box-like structures, and now stood at the edge of an eerily quiet lot.

Maybe it was still too early, but with the expensive equipment sitting unattended, Matilda expected _someone_ to be there. There were several diggers, a small crane and various handheld tools lying about. She knew for a fact that those cost good money, and no one in their right mind would leave it out in the open. But the construction site was completely empty, in fact the whole street was empty.

She found this all very strange. The only car she'd seen in the area had been the one close to running her over, and even that had sped away down the street.

Massaging her temples Matilda turned and started to walk back towards the centre of the city. She still had people to find, but she knew she should rest. Her head felt like there was some huge pressure building up inside, ready to burst at a moments notice. Paired with the fever she was almost certain she had, Matilda felt awful.

Suddenly from down the street and behind her, there was a mighty crash. The sound of metal on metal reached her ears and Matilda spun around. Disoriented from her sudden turn, she swayed a bit as she tried to locate the source.

Down past the abandoned construction site, on the next block over was a particularly large warehouse. Walls of concrete with a huge banner on the front displaying the words, "Available for rent," Matilda squinted. There were things moving around the edge of the building. Large, shiny things.

Almost tank like, she watched their stiff movements as they filed around the perimeter. Most went around corners, and she lost sight of them, but there were still several that stayed in her line of vision. From what she could see, the things situated themselves to face the wall, broad backs facing out with the sun reflecting harshly off them.

Bruce had mentioned something about robots once. He'd said the words, "Slade Bots," but they'd never meant anything to Matilda.

She couldn't explain it, but the huge robots by the building were making her uneasy. Of course anyone that came across giant robots having staring contests with walls would be uneasy, but this was more. There was a bigger picture, she could tell. And Batman had taught her to trust that feeling.

The heavy weight in her stomach was telling her that something was going to happen. And of course, the second she took a step towards the warehouse, something did.

All at once, as if by a simultaneous command issued by her foot moving, the robots smashed through the walls.

Sprinting now, Matilda pushed the voice that was whispering, "You're not strong enough to fight," to the back of her mind. There were sounds coming from the building, and they were strange sounds. She had to find out what they were. There were flashes of green accompanied by something Matilda could only describe as fairy dust sounds.

Reaching the jagged opening caused by a robot, Matilda saw a small battle going on. There were a couple people flying, someone shooting something blue and a fourth using a staff. Details of any kind were lost due to the split second she had to look around, but in the back of her mind, something made the connection between the flying people and her own powers. She was in the presence of other meta-humans.

If she'd had time to marvel at that, she would have, but a specific kind of movement caught her eye instead. To her right there was a robot with its arm raised, like it was about to smash something to bits. The bulk of the machine kept Matilda from seeing the ground in front of the thing, but she was positive there was a person about lying there.

Too far away to make it on foot in time, Matilda sank to the ground on one knee and pounded a fist to the floor, the purple of her palms shining through the spaces between her fingers. As the robot's arm was behind its head, it was pulled down. It was difficult to manipulate that specific area of gravity from so far away, but she managed. Running closer she made a clawing motion with her fingers and the bot was torn to pieces.

The sudden and forced use of energy was threatening to make her fall over. The room was slightly fuzzy, but Matilda could still see who had almost been squished.

It was the green boy, the one she'd met not 12 hours ago. Their eyes met for only a fraction of a second, but she could see that he was smiling.

She was shocked. What was _he _doing here? Is he crazy? Doesn't he realize that he could be killed in this?

Matilda was about to ask him those very things running through her mind, but she became aware of more enemies approaching. The room darkened around the edges as she called on her remaining energy to help her. Instincts and training took over and she was dimly aware that she was removing and condensing gravity. Feeling more drained than ever, she felt a sharp pain course through her side. It was becoming difficult to breathe properly.

Panting, she heard a call and the sounds of heavy footsteps.

Through blurry and darkening tunnel vision, Matilda saw a shape move swiftly at her. With a loud _thud_ that she was sure was the robot hitting her, she was forced back. The girl remembered being thrown, but not landing.

For a moment, Matilda regained conciousness. On the ground in an uncomfortable sprawled position, she blinked stupidly at something that was standing over her.

It was a huge bengal tiger, standing in a defensive crouch and snarling. She was lying between it's front and back legs, all of her shielded by this mysterious creature. It was gorgeous, and lethal.

Matilda then sank back into the darkness of unconsciousness with a single, curious thought. _Interesting,_ she mused sleepily._ It's green._

* * *

Alright, chapter 4! Yay! Hopefully this will make up for the late chapter, but honestly it was my computer.

Thanks to all who read, review, and follow! It means so much!

-Lilly


	5. Guilt and a Proper Introduction

Beast Boy was sitting in the infirmary. He sat with his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands, every so often giving out a heavy sigh. His plastic chair was uncomfortable, but he was too distracted to really notice.

The girl was unconscious still, even though it had been several hours since they'd brought her back to the Tower. This concerned him more than it should, he realized. He doesn't even know her name and still he hasn't moved from her side.

His team had given him knowing looks when he insisted he stay with her, but BB had told everyone that he felt responsible for getting her hurt, which was true, but that wasn't the only reason. He now sat to her left and was being thoroughly creepy. He still couldn't shake the feeling that he knew her somehow. It made sense to _him_ that if he spent enough time staring at her face, he'd remember where they'd met. It was also just a coincidence that she was extremely easy to stare at for long periods of time...right?

Her shoulder length hair was splayed out to one side behind her head. The brown curls were tight, but looked soft and shiny on the white pillow. He'd always assumed that tight curls meant frizzy hair, but not with this girl, that's for sure. Ridiculously enough, he'd had to fight the urge to reach out and stroke the dark locks. As soon as that thought had popped up, a sneaky voice had told him, _You're a creep, Beast Boy. You don't touch random girls' hair._

He sighed again and melted into his chair. While he sat there, legs and arms sprawled, he looked over the girl's prone figure. A wave of guilt hit him in the gut. She looked in rough shape. And it was because of him.

Amazingly, her scalp hadn't been cut when the bot hit her. He was thankful for that, but of course she lost blood another way. Instead of gushing blood from her head, she'd landed on her arm and shredded the skin.

As they'd laid her on the bed and Cyborg had started checking her injuries, the metal man had said out loud to no one in particular, "That's some nasty road rash."

"You know, technically it's not road rash. She didn't get it from a road," Beast Boy had tried to lighten the mood the only way he knew how. The only reaction he had gotten was a more focused Cyborg. "We could call it Bot Rash?" the green boy had suggested with a grin.

He'd gotten a look for that one.

Now the girl's 'road rash' was wrapped in white gauze. Her entire left arm was encased like a cocoon in the stuff. BB cringed at what the scar would look like.

Her pretty face and delicate nose now had an oxygen tube strapped to it, making sure she kept breathing properly. There was an IV in her right arm. She had a few bruises on her collarbone and probably down the rest of her left side from the fall. Cyborg had summed up her injuries in words Beast Boy knew; she had a severe concussion, a cracked rib, and was apparently battling a rather bad head cold.

Beast Boy gave a sad sigh, hoping to let go of the blame he put on himself. He ran a hand through his hair and was about to sigh again but stopped. He was starting to annoy himself.

"You can't blame yourself," a monotone voice told him.

He jerked into a proper sitting position as Raven smoothly entered the room. He sent her a withering look for scaring him.

"I know everyone will tell you that, but it's true. It's not your fault."

"You don't know what happened, Raven. It _is_ my fault that she's like-like-" he waved a hand at the unconscious beauty before him. It was no use, the guilt hadn't left.

Raven moved to stand on the other side of the girl. She looked at him, emotionless, and asked tiredly, "Then why don't you tell me what happened? I didn't see much, I was too busy. When I did look up she was already unconscious."

As she spoke, the sorceress went about covering the girl's arm in her black power. Closing her eyes, she moved her hands that were in the air back and forth, concentrating on healing. BB frowned at her. "Why don't you work on her head first?"

Raven explained flatly, "Because her brain should heal itself as much as possible. It can only do that when there's nothing else to focus on. I'll heal her arm a bit more so she can use energy healing naturally. Now tell," she commanded.

"There's not a whole lot to tell," he shrugged. "She appeared out of nowhere and got hit because she was trying to help me." He stared at his hands.

He heard the frown in Raven's voice. "She was stupid to try and help, Beast Boy. Any smart human would have seen there was nothing to be done."

"She's not human." He looked up, but could only focus on a blank piece of wall behind Raven's head. "She's the girl I met yesterday. She saved my life Rae."

"What are you-"

He shook his head, "She's a meta-human, like us. Or, like me anyway. Are you human? Don't answer that. Anyway, I was about to be killed by a Slade Bot. She took it down." He sat in sober silence for a moment, fully taking in the fact that he could have died today.

He glanced at her face, his saviour's face. Everything had been fuzzy as the Bot had approached him, but he knew for certain that he would have been crushed by it. But then she had come and saved his sorry green butt.

He suddenly felt eyes on him.

Raven had stopped healing the girl's arm and was staring at him with an unreadable emotion on her face. It was barely there, but Beast Boy was certain it was emotion. She looked almost...concerned?

"Raven?" he asked warily.

"You almost died today." she whispered. He nodded slowly, lips pursed. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I don't know," he started, now uncomfortable with the way she was looking at him. "I had more important things to think about?" He couldn't help it when his eyes flickered briefly to the girl.

Raven's 'blank face' was on again. "Sorry, but I was just startled. It's never really been a pressing issue. You know, that one of us could die."

Beast Boy leaned forward so his arms were on the edge of the infirmary bed. He knew exactly what Raven was talking about. It wasn't before today that he thought one of them could actually die fighting. It was a scary thought, that's for sure.

He observed the girl's hand, which was right in front of him. Just her slim fingers weren't wrapped in gauze, and when Raven started healing again the black power crackled and surrounded them. He had to fight the urge to reach out and take her hand in his.

The enchantress broke the silence after a few minutes, her power disappearing. "That should be good for her arm. You can take the IV out while I do a bit of work on her head."

BB got up and leaned across the girl to reach the small needle in her arm. Raven shuffled to the side slightly and held her hands out, magic and whatever other voodoo stuff working on the girl's head. He gently peeled off the medical tape holding the IV in place, and had just pulled it out when he heard a sharp intake of breath beneath him.

There was a split second of silence as the girl, now wide awake, probably could only see a guy with a needle leaning over her, and something black hovering around her face. But then things started happening.

BB saw from the corner of his eye a purple glow, before her palms slammed into the bed and he was forced down as far as he could go. Which wasn't very far, considering he was on top of the girl.

He could hear Raven's surprised and angry sounds from the head of the bed, and the heavy breathing from the girl. She was spewing questions like a broken fountain, and with each one Beast Boy felt himself getting heavier and heavier. His arms were hanging over the edge of the bed and they felt like they had weights glued to the ends. He made an effort to lift them, but it was impossible.

He could see everything in the room that could move was being pushed to the ground. Some spare IV bags in the corner were drooping so low he thought they would rip open. Any wires on machines were dipping to the ground, like they were being pulled by someone invisible. _Incredible, she's affecting the whole room._

It was getting harder to breathe and he tried to tell the girl that it was alright, but he couldn't get air out. He heard a few of her many questions, "Who are you? Where am I? What have you done to me? Answer me, now!"

Her voice was fierce and determined, no hint of fear at all. _Wow that's hot._ He turned his head with a strangled groan, why was it so hard to move?

"Argh-it's ok...kay. I won't...hurt you.." He looked up to meet her blazing eyes. Something registered on her face, and he hoped it meant she recognized him. He also noticed her eyes. _So they are purple, _he thought happily.

"You," she whispered, eyes wide. Her hands flew up, the purple glow fading and Beast Boy found he could breathe again. The girl sat up when he got off her legs, rubbing his ribs in the process. His chest felt all squished and cramped.

He completely forgot about his discomfort when the girl started swaying in the bed. She clutched her head with a dazed look, tousled hair being scrunched even more as she moaned. Her free hand clutched her side and her eyes drooped and she was panting. A look of annoyance flashed briefly on her face, and she gingerly felt the oxygen tube. With a hard swallow she ripped it off.

The green boy could almost see the energy and adrenaline draining from her battered body. The sudden effort to use her powers and interrogate him was taking its toll. He quickly rushed to her side. He tried to give her something to focus on, and not just a large room she didn't recognize. "Hey, hey it's ok. You're alright. It's me, do you remember? I'm Beast Boy."

He gently pushed her back down while repeating soothing words. When he looked into her soft, purple eyes, he could see that she was staring at him intently. He thought he caught a small smile when he told her his name, but he probably imagined it.

Raven appeared, looking disgruntled. She dragged herself up, using the head of the bed for support. Beast Boy saw her open her mouth, most likely to make some sort of unhelpful remark, but he shot her a look.

He glanced back to the still slightly freaked out girl. "Hey you gotta calm down a bit. I'm Beast Boy, alright? I won't hurt you, you're safe. Do you remember me?" He was aware of the unabashed hope in his voice, but he didn't care. She gave a small nod as her muscles fully relaxed.

He kept his hands on her shoulders as her eyes fluttered shut. He felt his mouth twitch into a smile as he watched her. _What's wrong with you, man? _

With a jolt he remembered something, and had to really concentrate on not shouting his question to her. "Hold on, don't fall asleep yet. What's your name?" he said softly, giving her a small shake.

With a slight start her eyes opened halfway. "Matilda," she breathed. "My name is Matilda."

Then her eyes closed.

* * *

Beast Boy was ridiculously happy for some reason. It had only been her name, but it felt right to know it. Like something larger than he could realize had happened. Maybe it was tied to the familiar feeling she gave him. What Matilda gave him.

_Matilda, her name is Matilda._ He grinned like an idiot. He heard Raven leave the room, but all he could do was stare at the girls face. The green changeling could feel that something good had happened, but he couldn't pin point it.

It was several minutes later that he decided he should go and update Robin. He stood up, still smiling, and made his way to the main room.

He walked in, like he had this morning, to find Robin staring at the monitor. This time his other teammates weren't in sight. Beast Boy took a deep breath before cautiously approaching his leader.

In all honesty, Beast Boy was worried Robin would over-react at his offer. It was common knowledge Bird Boy was untrusting to outsiders at his best, but what about at his worst? The sudden incident with the Slade Bots had made the caped teen sour-faced. Now with a stranger in their hospital wing, a "potentially dangerous stranger in our hospital wing" according to Robin, he was all brow-furrowed and tight-lipped. The green boy was prepared for the wrath that had been trained by Batman himself.

"Uh-hey, Robin. How's it going?" he asked awkwardly.

"Fine," came his stony voice. This could be harder than he thought.

"So, you know the girl in the infirmary? Well her name's Matilda-"

"Good for her."

Beast Boy sighed. "Look man, I know you're in a bad mood but hear me out. Just let her stay 'til she's better and give her a chance."

Robin straightened from his brooding slouch. He turned to BB, "What do you mean by give her a chance?"

"She's the girl with the really cool powers I told you guys about. She took down three thugs last night by herself without throwing a punch, and she kicked serious Slade Bot butt this morning." He marked off every statement with a gloved finger, hoping to make it sound persuasive. "I want you to consider the possibility of letting her join the team."

Robin was silent for a moment, probably running through multiple scenarios and outcomes, like usual. When Beast Boy saw his jaw relax, he knew he'd made a start. Robin told him slowly, "I'll let her stay and heal. But after that she'll have to show us that she's willing to commit to being a Titan. Do you understand?"

Beast Boy grinned and gave a very non-manly, "Thanks, Robin! You're the best!" He then ran out of the room, and hunted down the rest of his friends to tell them the news. It seemed only Starfire held the same enthusiasm he had, but he didn't care. He knew in his gut that Matilda would make a great team member.

It took several more days, but she finally woke up again. Cyborg seemed happy with her rate of healing, and didn't object to her moving around. Beast Boy made sure he was the one to help her around and give her a tour.

The day she'd woken up for good, he'd walked into the infirmary, purple jello and spoon in hand. He was planning on eating his snack beside Matilda, like he had for the past 48 hours every four hours, but Beast Boy was unfortunately prevented from enjoying it.

When he rounded the corner into the condensed hospital, he stubbed his toe on the door frame. Cursing, he hopped around and tried to keep his jello in the container. He failed miserably, to say the least.

"Owww!" he whined, flexing his foot. Seeing his ruined food he cried, "Aw man." Scooping the purple goop up he chucked it in a nearby garbage. It was only when Beast Boy looked up from discarding his dessert did he see Matilda staring at him.

He froze, not sure what to do. _Do I say hi? Do I ask how she's feeling? Do I laugh about what happened? Oh, God! She saw what happened! I've been quiet for way too long._ _  
_

Eventually he settled for a, "Hi?" Matilda gave him a half smile. "Hey," she answered quietly.

He felt the tension in the air disappear, and suddenly he felt perfectly happy. She was finally awake, after all. Now he could convince her to join the Titans. "So how ya feeling?" He carefully made his way closer, waiting for some sign that he should bugger off.

Matilda didn't show any disapproval at him coming closer, instead she turned around and started rummaging through a bag on a chair. At least, he thought it was a bag. It was dirty and frayed, the dark green fabric looked barely held together. "I'm actually alright. I guess I have you to thank for helping me." She glanced over her shoulder at him before resuming her searching in the tattered thing.

He hopped onto her bed, sitting cross legged. "It's no problem. So how's your head? You got hit pretty hard." He observed her as she sorted her stuff. He couldn't help but notice that everything in the bag was dirty and full of stains, like the whole thing had been dunked in mud.

Matilda just shrugged again, this time turning to face him. "I heal fast, I guess." She looked at him with a confused look. "How come you're here?"

"Well, I kinda live here-"

"No, how is it that we ran into each other? I really thought that I'd never see you again, and now I wake up and here you are." She shook her head slightly, as if amazed at the improbability of it all. Beast Boy laughed.

"Ya, I wasn't expecting you to show up like you did, either. You really kicked some Bot butt out there," he grinned at her. Matilda gave another half smile. Is that all she did? Give half smiles? _Challenge accepted,_ Beast Boy smirked inwardly.

Matilda leaned against the edge of the bed next to where Beast Boy was perched. "And about the warehouse thing, sorry you got hurt because of me." He sheepishly rubbed his neck, focusing on her crossed arms instead of her eyes.

She seemed genuinely shocked. "I didn't get hurt because of you. You can't blame yourself," Matilda nudged his elbow.

It was like an electric current hit him through his funny bone. "You saved my green butt from being killed in that warehouse. If I hadn't have been so distracted with a Bot, you wouldn't have been using up your energy helping me," he reasoned in nervous voice. _What is it about this girl?_

He quickly snuck a glance at her. She was staring at the floor in front of her, slender brows slightly smushed together. "You really shouldn't have been in that warehouse, you know. You may be green, but you should have really let the others handle-" She cut off abruptly. Her head jerked up. "Do you have powers to?" she asked with the most emotion he'd heard from her yet.

Beast Boy couldn't help but show off a bit. He gave a smug smile and turned into a huge python. Slithering off the bed to the cold tile floor, he then became a falcon, then a mouse, before ending as a Bengal tiger. His huge head turned to the side, and gave her the best, "What do you think?" face he could as a large cat.

Matilda's mouth was opened in a gape, but over all she looked almost ecstatic. "You're a meta-human," she stated.

He changed back to the green boy and sat down again. "Yup."

"Wow. Sorry for assuming you didn't have powers. I should have put two and two together when a green tiger helped me," she gave a soft chuckle.

Her eyes were still full of wonder, which Beast Boy thought was absolutely beautiful. Something told him the quiet girl beside him didn't even realize she was smiling softly. He waved a hand at her, "It's alright. And helping you in tiger form was the least I could do for saving my life."

They were both quiet for a minute, just staring off into their own private worlds. Beast Boy then turned to her and said softly, "I don't think we've actually met. Properly. I'm Beast Boy." He held out a hand.

Matilda eyed him. It wasn't an unfriendly search, it almost had a cheeky hint to it. Familiarity hit him again, but then it was followed by more happiness. "Hi, Beast Boy. I'm Matilda. It's very nice to finally meet you." She shook his hand and gave her seemingly usual half smile.

"It's nice to meet you to. And not be scared shitless as I float off the ground," he grinned at her. She smirked and smacked his shoulder. Was it just him, or did it seem completely normal and natural to be joking with this girl he'd _just_ met? But he'd have to think about that later, she had people to meet.

"Come on," he sprang off the bed. "You're gonna meet the others," he said excitedly.

"Others?"

* * *

YAY! Chapter 5 is up! Well I'm terribly sorry for the delay, the work loads been piling up and I've got a huge history essay due soon. I'll try and write whenever I can but fair warning it could be a little bit for an update.

Speaking of updates, if you ever want an updates on the updates check out my profile. I keep that up to date with the status of chapters and stories etc. The Grav (as I call it for short) is the only story I'm working on at the moment so it shouldn't be too hard to find the info you're after.

Well thanks to all reviewers/readers/favouriteers! It means the world to me! Well let me know what you think of this chap, sorry if it's not the best. I certainly don't think it's my best work but I'll work hard on chapter 6, promise!

Thanks and love to you all,

-Lilly


	6. A Giggle, a Letter, and a Nickname

"Well you've met Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven. Don't worry, they're actually really nice but seeing as how you're new here-"

Beast Boy's voice faded out. Matilda knew what he was going to say; everyone would warm up to her in time. Not like she was staying very long, so the wary meta-humans didn't need to get uptight about her. She would probably feel the same way if a stranger was staying in her house, though. Matilda felt the accusing stares were a little unnecessary, but to each their own, she thought glumly.

Starfire had been the nicest of the three. Suspicious in her own way, granted, but friendly nonetheless. Cyborg seemed like he could be nice, but he'd looked over her willowy frame with a disdainful eye. It had felt like he was inspecting her, analyzing her capabilities as a fighter. She'd been more than tempted to show him the extent of her powers, but Bruce wouldn't have wanted her to. Plus there was her new friend, the green boy who was talking at an incredible rate beside her. It was actually quite adorable to watch him blather on and on about how in no time she'd fit in.

It almost made her sad that she couldn't stay here, where ever here was.

Raven had been the most unaccepting. Beast Boy had dragged her to a room down a bare hallway and the door had slid open to reveal the grouchy looking girl. Grey skin made her purple hair stand out sharply, and she'd given Matilda the creepiest stare she'd ever seen. It was devoid of all emotion, yet underneath the several layers of protective masks Matilda could see a general dislike aimed at her. _Odd._

"But again, don't worry too much. I mean come on, _I _like you and everyone likes me so everyone will like you. Now you just gotta meet Robin, I'm gonna warn ya now-"

Again, Beast Boy's voice died out in her ears. Did he just say Robin?

"No way," Matilda whispered. Was it possible she'd stumbled upon him by accident?

"Hey Beast Boy?" she interrupted suddenly. Not caring she was being rude, she held up a hand and stopped in the middle of the hallway. "You never told me where I am. Like, exactly where I am?"

She focused her eyes on the ground, in the general direction of Beast Boy's shoes.

"Titan Tower," Beast Boy shrugged. He grabbed her hand and dragged her along, apparently nothing strange had happened in his eyes.

Matilda couldn't believe it. In the past two weeks she'd been travelling from Gotham to Jump, nothing up until now had gone perfectly easy. Maybe the Fates were being kind to her for once, Lord knew she needed a break. She'd gotten lost, been victim to attempted robberies (key word _attempted_), had to walk along highways at night when she couldn't find a ride, sleep in alleys for the first time in eight months, and to top it all off was knocked unconscious by a metal monster. At least now she didn't have to spend another few days searching for Richard Grayson.

Her green friend led her to another set of stairs, now talking about all the cool stuff they got to do as Titans. Since she'd only ever heard about Robin, and not the Titans, Matilda's hearing perked up.

"Well for starters we're sort of like the guardians of Jump. We do what the cops can't, like fight other meta-humans. We get alerted when there's trouble, show up, kick some bad guy butt, and let the authorities take them away." He turned his head and grinned at her.

Matilda felt the corner of her mouth being pulled up in a half-smile. That's happened a lot today, she realized. "Sounds exciting. Is that what you guys were doing when I was..uh..knocked out?"

Beast Boy snickered. "Ya, that's what we were doing. And I'm not gonna forget you got knocked out." They reached a landing in the stairs. It was only when he let go, did she notice that they'd been holding hands all the way down. The lack of warmth on her fingers was devastatingly noticeable. The green shape-shifter struck a macho pose. "Was it my awesome skills that made you faint?" he questioned with wiggling eyebrows, "Or my devilishly good looks?" he continued, twirling his pretend moustache.

Matilda gave a quiet giggle. _Wait, giggle? Since when do _I _ giggle? I'm the second protégé of the Batman, for God's sakes! I do not giggle. _But she knew for sure that she had in fact giggled when Beast Boy gave her another toothy grin.

He then took her hand again and told her about the time that him and Cyborg had gotten sucked into Raven's mind once. _Wow, these people are weird._

It was less then two minutes later that they arrived at what Beast Boy called the 'main room.' From the doorway they stood at, Matilda could see a large, open space occupied by a round couch. There was a kitchen in one corner and computer screens on the opposite wall. Directly ahead and down a few steps stood none other than Richard Grayson. Technically to his team he was Robin, but Bruce had only ever called him Richard.

The caped boy was sitting on the couch, hunched over what she could only guess was a case file. She gave Beast Boy's hand a slight squeeze, and without looking back started to walk down the stairs.

Beast Boy gave a strangled, "Uummm..." She threw what she hoped was a 'don't worry' expression over her shoulder, and kept going.

Robin didn't look up as she casually made her way over to the couch. Matilda didn't bother to say anything, he already knew she was in the room. She glanced at the different monitors and gadgets lying around the place. Cyborg, she remembered, seemed like the techy kind.

Reaching the edge of the couch, Matilda now stood almost in front of Robin. He was still pretending to be absorbed in the many papers in his hands. He flipped a page over and said, "So who are you?"

"A friend." She shrugged her shoulders. "But you can call me Matilda." The green changeling at the back of the room was visibly panicking. _What's his problem?_

"Sorry, Matilda, but I have enough friends. What do you want? You're allowed to leave whenever you desire." Robin sounded almost bored with the conversation. Matilda smirked.

"I'm a friend of a friend. Maybe this will help." She pulled from her backpack a gleaming batarang, one that Bruce had given her before she'd left.

"This should convince him you're not going to sabotage his team," he'd told her with a fond smile. When Robin didn't look up, Matilda lazily threw it. It twirled before sticking into the coffee table, right in front of the Titan. She thought Beast Boy would faint.

That got his attention. He stiffened as he stared at the bat shaped piece of metal gracing the coffee table with its presence. Matilda could almost hear his brain working as he looked at her for the first time.

She shouldn't have been surprised to see his mask on, but she was. Maybe it was because she'd seen the dozens of pictures of him as Richard, not Robin. She knew that under the black and white mask was a pair of bright blue eyes. She also knew that he was capable of smiling; she'd seen the proof.

Matilda lowered her voice, so only the young man on the couch could hear her, "He says 'hi.'"

Robin sat up straight and called behind him, "Beast Boy?"

"Uh-huuuh?" came the high-pitched, faint reply.

"Could you give us a minute?" The door closed as Beast Boy left the room on wobbly legs. _Poor dude._

Matilda sat on the edge of the sofa, carefully watching Rich-_Robin, call him Robin._ Robin put all his papers away before standing and carrying the file to a drawer. He stayed there, watching Matilda. It was the same stare Cyborg had given her. This time, he was gauging her physical capabilities but also measuring if she was a worthy intellectual opponent. Instead of a wrestling match with the metal man, Robin looked for her abilities in a game of chess. She was also aware of how he kept himself easily able to move. Sitting down on the couch, acting submissive, was torture. But she knew not to try to intimidate the first sidekick of Batman.

_Note to self, don't ever call him "sidekick."_

"I'm guessing you didn't pick that up at a gift shop?" Robin said sarcastically, nodding to the batarang. She smirked again.

"No, a friend gave it to me."

"Which friend are you talking about? Either way I'm assuming he sent you to the Titans." Robin cocked his head to one side. She could see the beginnings of a smile on his face. It seemed he was glad to meet another sidekick.

Matilda gave him a half smile. "You're correct to assume that Batman sent me. Actually, Bruce did to. I've met both, and I've lived at the Manor for a while."

Robin raised his eyebrows. "Wait, you've _lived _at the Manor?" She nodded, looking at the coffee table. Matilda knew what his next question would be.

"Then-uh-what do you know about me?" The first hint of nerves showed through his voice. He very obviously hasn't told his teammates about Richard Grayson.

Matilda got more comfortable on the couch before saying, "I know everything about you, Richard." His previously crossed arms dropped to his sides. She looked up. "When he wasn't telling me how to disarm a weapon or hit a weak spot on armor he was talking about you. You're like a son to him."

Richard shuffled uneasily where he stood. With a pang she remembered that Batman was a slightly sore topic for him. But she kept her face impassive as she opened her backpack. From the inside of a hardcover book she gently pulled out the envelope that Bruce had given her. It didn't have a name on it though, and when she'd asked he'd cryptically said, "You'll know when it's time."

"Here," she held it out. "He gave this to me before I left. Never told me what was in it though. But it's for you, I know it is." She stood up and started towards the door after letting the letter fall to the coffee table. She left the batarang where it was.

"Beast Boy wants you to join us." He said it softly, almost sounding confused. "I've heard that your powers are impressive, which also means they could be dangerous. If you join my team, know that I'll do whatever I have to to keep them safe."

Matilda got the obvious threat, but she also picked up that he hadn't said she couldn't become a Titan. "Understood," she told him lightly. Readjusting her bag on her shoulders she walked to the door again.

She was half way there when he spoke again. "You can show us what you're made of tomorrow."

* * *

Beast Boy was freaking out to say the least.

_What was she thinking? Throwing a piece of sharp metal at Robin?! _He wrung his hands together and then let them fall, only to repeat the process over and over.

"Doesn't she realize that Robin is one scary dude?" he quietly yelled to the floor, which he was pacing over. Maybe in a fight, Matilda and her squish-ya-the-ground powers gave her the advantage, but in a battle of wits, BB didn't think anyone could beat Robin.

Back and forth he walked in front of the common room door. He'd almost fainted again when Bird Boy asked - no scratch that - _demanded_ to be alone with her. She's probably in there now being interrogated or getting one of those famous Batman sidekick stares.

It had been many minutes since he'd been told to leave, and every 30 seconds since he'd tried to listen through the door. For the tenth time he pressed his green ear to the cool metal but tried and failed, again, to hear anything. _Dammit, Cyborg. Why'd they have to be sound proof doors? _

He let out a tormented sigh. What had he done? Matilda was one tough-ass chick, but this was _Robin!_

He continued pacing just as the door slid open. He bit his nails through his gloves and spun around, prepared for the worst. He found Matilda walking out with a smug expression. Very slowly he unclenched his teeth from his digits and stared at her.

"You're not broken?" He raised an eyebrow.

Ignoring him and rolling her bright purple eyes she said, "No, Beast Boy. Robin's not as scary as you think."

"Bu-bu-he...you were alone...and...I thought...what? I wouldn't have lasted half as long as you did!"

Matilda merely shrugged as they headed down the corridor. "Like I said, he's not as scary as you might think."

"Are you insane? This is _Robin_ we're talking about! He's _the_ sidekick to Batman!" Beast Boy waved his arms around. He'd never tried to imagine what it was like to be trained by the Batman himself. If he had to guess; scary. So it was up to him to make sure that Matilda understood just how not good it is to piss off the protegé of Batman.

He looked over to the girl beside him, expecting to see a look of awe, fear, and utter awareness at the seriousness of the subject. Instead he found something much less dramatic; a smirk.

"Well I'll keep it in mind that he's a sidekick to Batman, Beast Boy." She just kept smirking and walking.

Part of the green boy was terrified that she would get her ass kicked by the guy with the cape. The other part was fascinated she'd lasted this long. But he could sense a finality to the topic, so he changed it.

"So did he say anything about you joining the Titans?" he asked excitedly.

"Well he didn't say no."

"So he said yes," he stated confidently.

"No."

Beast Boy's brow furrowed. "Oh. Well then. Did he say anything?"

"He wants me to go through your training course tomorrow. Apparently I can use one of the spare rooms until then."

Beast Boy felt an unexplainable surge of happiness settle in his chest. _She's staying. She's gonna be a Titan, I know it._ He didn't know how he knew it, but he did.

As BB watched the brown-haired, purple eyed young woman beside him, walking with a quiet confidence, he felt his heart warm. Maybe the familiar feeling was unexplained at the moment, but he planned on making it very explainable very soon. He wanted to know Matilda. He wanted to understand her.

"Well it's kind of late, so I'll show you to your room then? By the way it's been like two days since you were knocked out. You kind of had a mini coma."

"A room sounds good." She nodded and looked at him. He could see appreciation in her bright eyes. "Thanks, BB."

He grinned at that. She'd just called him BB.

Soon they were at one of the many spare rooms in the Tower. The door slid open to reveal a plain room with nothing but a mirror, dresser, and twin size bed. A bathroom was connected, but there was no closet. Oh well, she'd be moved into a permanent room soon enough.

Matilda walked in. She seemed pleased with the room, why he had no idea. With a slender hand she flicked on the light switch. Her bag was dumped on the bed before she turned back to the green boy standing awkwardly in the door.

"Well here you are. Sorry it's not much but you can get a different room later. Will you be good for the night?"

Matilda came closer, gave him the same half-smile, and said softly, "Goodnight, Beast Boy. I'll see you in the morning."

BB stepped out into the hallway, and before making the door close, he gave her a smile and said, "Goodnight, Til."

* * *

Hey guys! Well chapter 6 is up a lot faster then I thought! Yay! Well leave a review to tell me what you think. I'm pretty sure this is going to be quite a lengthy story, so just to let you know.

I might as well take the time to explain some things. There will be a few cannon moments from the show added in, but not too many. Most of it I think will be in Matilda's POV, I find it way easier to write for her instead of BB. If you'd like to see equal amounts of BB and Til then leave a comment, and depending on how many I get I might make the effort to get into Beast Boy's head more :)

Thanks to all reviewers/followers/favouriteers and of course readers! I do not own anything related to Teen Titans, only Matilda and the original plot.

-Lilly


	7. Uneasiness

Sooooo soooo sorry for the delay you guys! I feel so bad, but now that it's summer, and I rediscovered my love of writing, I'll be working a lot more on this. Hope you enjoy this chap, and I really hope someone reviews for me!

Thanks to all followers/favouriteers/readers, you guys are the ones that helped me get back on track!

-Lilly

* * *

To anyone that had spent any amount of time around Matilda, it was usually obvious she wasn't the nickname type. She hated with a passion Mattie, Mat, Matildy, and Dilly; all of which were Brady's inventions from when they were kids. But 'Til' was something new. The way Beast Boy had said it wasn't out of teasing, but pure friendliness. He'd said it so easily too. It sounded natural coming from him, and it was freaking Matilda out that she wasn't upset. Taking a deep breath, Matilda slowly made her way across the room. She decided that she'd deal with the nickname situation later.

Collapsing on top of the bed, not bothering with taking clothes off or moving blankets, she allowed herself one brief smile. She hadn't slept in a proper bed since leaving Bruce and the Manor, and having something familiar, even something as simple as a real bed, was nice. It would be most likely she wouldn't sleep at all during the night, but for the moment she was content pretending she was normal.

Around four in the morning she eventually fell asleep, and at five she woke up. Feeling energized, and thankfully free of a head cold, Matilda wondered what would happen when she left the room. Richar-_Robin, call him Robin,_ had said she'd be going through their obstacle course sometime soon. That wasn't an issue though. Even if her powers weren't up to par, she was confident that her regular fighting abilities would be enough. Beast Boy didn't seem like the kind to be overly impressed by powers anyway.

_What was that? No, no, no, no, you are not trying to impress the green dude!_ Matilda shot up on the bed, eyes wide. This was a problem. She shook herself,_ Snap out of it!_

Looking to the side table, she saw it was only 5:12. As good a time as any to get up. Plus she could make herself stop thinking about _him_. As soon as she stood up though, it occurred to her that maybe it would send the wrong message to be up before most of the Titans. But then again it would seem even worse to be the last one up.

It took her several minutes to reach a conclusion, but she eventually decided on wandering around and taking the risk.

Around 6:30, Matilda reached another conclusion; Titans Tower was huge. In over an hour she'd covered maybe half of the Tower's rooms and floors. She'd started at the top since it was closer and discovered; the roof, where Robin and Raven were laughing quietly together; Starfire, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Raven's rooms, three of which still had sleeping Titans in them; the main room/kitchen, which was empty and had strange fuzz covering everything; the infirmary, with the pristine beds giving her chills; and several storage rooms, each with dozens, if not hundreds, of boxes and crates. Matilda had been tempted to look in a few, but the thought of someone catching her snooping made her think otherwise.

All the while she had a strange feeling. It was like uneasiness, like she had the urge to continuously look over her shoulder. It wasn't until she was walking back towards the main room that she realized why. Everything about Titans Tower was unfamiliar. It was ridiculous, really. Bruce trusted Richard, he was practically his son for God's sakes, and Batman trusted Robin, who was his protégée. In the logical part of her mind she knew there was no need to be on edge, but her heart said differently.

Matilda turned a corner in the hallway, completely distracted, and ran right into a solid, moving mass. She gave a very girly squeak of surprise, which she cursed herself for. In an instant, her instincts took over and without thinking she pushed herself away from the thing she'd hit. Landing on the floor, hands outstretched, she took away the gravity and the thing lifted into the air. She almost fell over again (which is ridiculous, seeing as how she was already on the ground) when she looked up into the green eyes of Beast Boy.

"Oh! Hi," she said in a voice much too high. She coughed awkwardly, "Well, sorry."

She carefully let the gravity return to Beast Boy's patch of floor. As her hands returned to normal, Beast Boy laughed, "No problem, I'm almost used to being levitated by now." He reached for her hand and pulled her up. Matilda's muscles stiffened at the unexpected contact, and she wobbled as she was tugged to a standing position. It was only when she was a few inches away from him, did she realize his hands were on her waist. _Oh dear Lord._

She gave a small smile to the floor as she tried to maintain distance. She was very aware how his hands were strong and warm on her hips. Managing to step back, mostly stable, she removed her traitorous hands from his chest, which had sneaked on despite her best efforts. She expected Beast Boy to hastily remove his hands from her waist, but instead they very slowly pulled away. It was almost reluctant. _That's weird._

"Are you alright? You seem, I don't know, distracted?" BB was looking at her with concerned emerald eyes. She shifted her weight to try and cover the heavy swallow she took.

"Why would you sat that?"

"Come on, Til," he gave a smirk. The use of her new nickname made her feel dangerously happy. "I'm pretty sure we both know you're much too ninja to not hear me coming. I'm not ninja, trust me, and I could hear myself. I was very loud, I assure you."

"Well I'm flattered that you think I'm 'ninja' or whatever," she was careful to keep her voice indifferent. "But I'm fine, really."

"You're up pretty early. Sure you're fine?" He crossed his arms, and she could help but notice the lean muscle-_stop that!_

She shrugged, "I'm always up this early. I usually don't sleep more than a few hours. So, yes, I'm fine, Beast Boy."

"Alright," he put his hands up, admitting defeat with a grin. But his eyes still held worry. "So, ya wanna grab some breakfast with me?"

"Sure, why not." Since she was heading to the kitchen already, why not have some company?

Grinning at her, he grabbed her hand and started off in the opposite direction that Matilda had been walking. She was about to ask if she had been totally wrong, but thought better of it. It was then as they turned around another corner that the feeling of uneasiness suddenly spiked.

Matilda stopped dead at the mouth of a new hallway to her immediate right. She stood there, staring warily at the unremarkable corridor, and felt the unfamiliar urge to turn and run. She _never_ turned and ran away from _anything_. The fact that there was yet another unfamiliar experience in an already strange place was unsettling to say the least.

Down the hallway, past the concerned Beast Boy, was a single door. It wasn't anything special, just a plain grey door set into a plain grey wall. Beside it was an expensive and high-tech looking keypad. The door transfixed her, drew her in. She could feel her fingers shaking around Beast Boy's. She had to get out of here. She had to leave, there was something not right behind that door. That door had secrets.

Gripping the green boy's hand tighter, she stalked away down the hallway.

* * *

"So you're going to go through the course in a minute. First, I want to see what area your powers can cover," Robin said as he stood before her. She was in the large compound that housed the Titan's newest training course. It was roughly the size of a small warehouse, with all kinds of terrain and metal panels in the walls and on the floors. The course itself was a large track, and from what she could tell, you started at the start line and made a large loop. Heavy duty industrial lights hung from the ceiling, giving the entire place an artificial light. "I hear you can levitate things? To an extent anyway."

All of the team stood in a loose semi-circle around her. Robin was slightly apart from the rest as he gave her instructions on the course. At his last statement, about the area of her powers, Matilda payed closer attention.

"By the way, what are your powers?" Robin looked at her with open curiosity. "Do you know?"

Matilda replied easily, "I can manipulate gravity."

Beast Boy gave a quiet, "Woooah," as the rest of the Titan's looked either in awe or wariness. She couldn't really tell the difference.

Robin nodded, eyebrows pushing up the edges of his mask. "Well let's see." He moved back to join his team, in the middle, beside Raven and Cyborg. Beast Boy stood beside the metal man, and Starfire stood beside the gothic girl. She saw Raven unconsciously shift towards her leader, and almost rolled her eyes. It was so obvious, she hoped Robin didn't mess it up.

Matilda took several steps back, letting herself become as aware as possible of the gravity. The familiar sound of her 'element' calmed her. Gravity didn't have a pulse or a rhythm, it just existed, always constant, never sleeping or giving up. She loved gravity, but it was usually stubborn. She'd never been able to make gravity move, although she'd tried. It was odd, but she could only control the intensity of the invisible force. She called it manipulation.

Matilda had a strange relationship with gravity. Feeling it's presence and being in contact with the earth was when she was strongest. Bruce theorized that gravity regenerated her, since she healed faster than normal. That was the good side. The less good side was that it took a lot of effort to control gravity. Over the years of practise she'd been able to reach farther and be more specific with each kind of her manipulation, but every so often it left her completely drained.

Her hands lit up, and she spread her fingers wide. She felt the force of _it_ throughout the training course, felt the pull as it kept everything safely on the ground. Just as she was about to demonstrate, a thought reached her.

"Cyborg," she called, letting a hint of mischief enter her voice. "Up, or down?"

The large teen raised his eyebrow and looked at her strangely, "Uhhh...up?" Beast Boy snickered into his hand.

"Good choice," she said, nodding her head. With a smirk, Matilda swept her arms up, palms to the sky, and made gravity disappear.

There were four yells of surprise and one laugh as the Titan's were lifted up into the air. Looking around, Matilda saw all but Beast Boy flailing. Behind her, everything not attached to the floor with bolts was floating. There were logs, crates, weapons, and broken pieces of metal hanging lazily above the ground.

She could feel gravity trying to force it's way back to normal, but Matilda ignored it. For a while now, she'd been finding it easier to keep large amounts of gravity under control for longer periods of time.

When Beast Boy caught her eye, she gave a small half-smile. He grinned and put his arms behind his head, like he was tanning on the beach as opposed to being off the ground.

Robin was looking around in awe, as was Cyborg and Starfire, but Raven was giving her a dark look. She just shrugged at the girl and ignored her. She'd let the gravity come back when Robin wanted it to. Thankfully that happened before her entire body shut down from exhaustion. "Alright, Matilda, you can let us down."

When all Titans were back on the floor of the course, Robin gave her an appreciative look over. "That's pretty impressive, I will say. You manipulated the entire warehouse, didn't you? I guess you weren't exaggerating, Beast Boy," Robin gave a smirk at the green boy, who was blushing.

_He talked about me?_ Matilda tried to squish the urge to smile.

Cyborg spoke up then, "Hold on. If you were doing...whatever it was you were doing, shouldn't you have been off the ground too?" His confusion seemed to be shared by the entire team, and Matilda thought for a minute. It wasn't the first time she'd considered the possibilities of why she couldn't effect her own gravity.

"I don't really know," she answered honestly. She shrugged her shoulders, not really able to provide a better answer.

No one seemed overly impressed with her 'not-much-of-an-answer' answer, but Robin dismissed it. "We'll have plenty of time to figure things out later."

Robin kept talking in his business like voice, making Matilda think of Bruce again. She didn't think she'd miss him this much.

"So are you ready to go through the course, Matilda?" Robin's tone suggested it wasn't really an option, but she was ready. She gave a nod, and the Titan's filed into a control room with a glass window, probably for viewing pleasure as people performed epic fails. The very thought that they could watch her was suddenly unnerving, though. The only person to really observe her train or fight was Batman, and she was used to that.

Matilda had a brief moment of panic. Everything, absolutely everything, in this blast Tower was new and strange. And now the entire team was scrutinizing her every move from behind a sheet of glass, like she was an experiment. But then she caught the green boy's eye again, and the reassuring smile he gave her seemed like a good luck charm. Maybe not _everyone_ would criticising.

An intercom buzzed to life, and Robin's voice sounded as she made her way to the starting line. It was thick, with black and yellow diagonal stripes across it. A few feet away was the end line, but she didn't spend too long looking at it, she just focused on the winding track ahead of her. "So you remember what to do? Just follow the things that try to stop you."

Even with her back to the control room, she could tell he was smirking. _He is _so _like Bruce. _She rolled her purple eyes, took her ready position, and thought of Beast Boy's smile.

"Good luck, Matilda. The timer starts now."


End file.
